Dr. Negar Ahmadi

Dr. Ahmadi is a Thoracic and Foregut surgeon at Michael Garron Hospital. Her primary focus is all diseases of the chest, with a particular interest in lung cancer, esophageal cancer, and benign esophageal diseases.

Dr. Ahmadi obtained her medical school degree at University of Toronto and completed her General Surgery residency at University of Ottawa. During residency, she attended Harvard University and obtained a Master of Public Health and Epidemiology.

After general surgery training, Dr. Ahmadi completed fellowship in Thoracic Surgery at McMaster University. She pursued advance fellowship training in minimally invasive thoracic surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston before returning to Canada.

Dr. Carly Barron, MD MSc FRCPC

Medical Oncologist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Carly Barron is a Medical Oncologist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. Her clinical interests are the treatment of endocrine and gastrointestinal cancers. She completed a Master of Science in Epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She completed her Medical Oncology Residency at the University of Toronto, her Internal Medicine Residency at McMaster University, and her Doctor of Medicine from the University of Ottawa. She has a focus in health services research and her interests are in understanding patterns of care and improving outcomes for patients with endocrine and gastrointestinal malignancies.

Dr. Kasia Czarnecka-Kujawa, MD, FRCPC, MPH

Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and an Interventional Pulmonologist at Toronto General Hospital

Dr. Czarnecka-Kujawa is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and an Interventional Pulmonologist at Toronto General Hospital, specializing in minimally invasive diagnosis and management of intrathoracic disease. As a Clinician Investigator in the Division of Respirology and Thoracic Surgery, her research focuses on health technology assessment in thoracic oncology, including decision modeling, administrative data analysis, and health-related quality of life. She is actively involved in international Interventional Pulmonology societies, contributes to interventional procedure training courses, and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology.

Dr. Marc de Perrot, MD

Dr. Marc de Perrot obtained his Medical Degree and completed his Surgical Residency at the University of Genevain Switzerland. In 2000, he began his Clinical and Research Fellowship in Thoracic Surgery at the University of Toronto and obtained his Masters degree in the Thoracic Surgery Laboratory in 2002. In 2004, Dr. de Perrot complemented his training by obtaining a Fellowship in Thoracic and Vascular Surgery at Hospital Marie-Lannelongue in Paris, France.

In 2005, he joined the Division of Thoracic Surgery as a staff surgeon and Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto. In 2009, he was appointed Associate Professor of Surgery based on his research and clinical work. Dr. de Perrot’s surgical expertise focuses on surgery for end-stage lung diseases such as lung and heart-lung transplantation as well as pulmonary endarterectomy for chronic thromboembolicpulmonary hypertension. He is also the Head of the Toronto Mesothelioma Program and is involved in basic science research, new treatment with immunotherapy and combined modality therapy.

Dr. de Perrot is a prolific author with over 100 peer reviewed articles as well as several book chapters and state-of-the-Art review. In addition, he regularly presents at international symposia. Dr. de Perrot is a regular reviewer for peer reviewed journals such as the American Journal of Transplantation, Annals of Thoracic Surgery, European Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Journal of Cardiovascular Surgery, Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation, and Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.

Laura Donahoe, MD, MSc, FRCSC

Laura Donahoe completed her undergraduate degree in Health Sciences at McMaster University and received her M.D. from Queen's University. She did general surgery training at Dalhousie University and thoracic surgery training at the University of Toronto, with a one-year fellowship specializing in CTEPH, mesothelioma and lung transplantation. She recently completed a MSc in Health Sciences Education at McMaster University. Her research interests are varied and include surgical education, specifically curriculum development and assessment, and clinical outcomes in CTEPH, mesothelioma and germ cell tumours.

Dr. Andrew Hope, MD, FRCPC

Clinician Scientist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
Cancer Clinical Research Unit (CCRU), Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Hope focuses his clinical practice on the management of lung and head and neck cancers. He is involved in research on normal tissue toxicity and focuses on developing methods to predict, prevent, or heal side effects of radiation therapy.

Dr. Keyvan Karkouti, MD, FRCPC, MSc

Dr. Karkouti obtained his MD, University of Toronto (1990), FRCPC, Anesthesia (1995), followed by a Fellowship at St. Michael’s Hospital (1995-96) and MSc, Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research, Department of Health Administration, University of Toronto (1999). He joined the Active Staff in the Department of Anesthesia and Pain Management, University Health Network, Toronto General Hospital in 1996. He served as its deputy anesthesiologist-in-chief (2011-18) and became the anesthesiologist-in-chief of the University Health Network, Sinai Health, and Women’s College Hospital (2019-present).

Dr. Karkouti is a Professor and Vice Chair of clinical affairs at the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Toronto; a Senior Scientist at the Toronto General Hospital Research Institute, University Health Network, and cross-appointed to the Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation and the Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care, University of Toronto.

Dr. Karkouti is a recognized investigator in the field of perioperative coagulopathy and blood management. He has published in high impact journals including JAMA, Circulation, and Anesthesiology. His studies have garnered substantial funding and have been recognized by prestigious research awards.

Shaf Keshavjee OC O.Ont MD MSc FRCSC FACS

Professor, Division of Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgery
University of Toronto

Dr. Shaf Keshavjee received his MD degree from the University of Toronto medical school followed by training in general surgery, cardiac surgery and thoracic surgery at the University of Toronto in Canada. Currently Chief of Innovation at University Health Network (UHN). He is also Director of the Latner Thoracic Research Laboratories and Professor of Thoracic Surgery and Biomedical Engineering, and Vice Chair for Innovation in the Department of Surgery at the University of Toronto.

Natasha B Leighl, BSc, MMSc, MD, FRCPC, FASCO

Professor, Department of Medicine

University of Toronto

Dr. Natasha Leighl is the Division Head of Medical Oncology and Hematology (DMOH) at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and the UHN-Sinai Health Department of Medicine. She holds the Daniel E. Bergsagel Chair in Medical Oncology, a joint UHN-University of Toronto Endowed Chair, and is Professor in the Department of Medicine and Adjunct Professor in the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, at the University of Toronto.

As a globally recognized expert in lung cancer precision medicine, diagnostics, clinical management, and drug development, Dr. Leighl has published over 450 peer-reviewed papers and been recognized as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher and ScholarGPS Highly Ranked Scholar. She previously led the Thoracic Medical Oncology Group at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre from 2011 to 2025 and held the OSI Pharmaceuticals Foundation Chair in Cancer New Drug Development through the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation from 2012 to 2025.

Dr. Leighl has made significant contributions to lung cancer research and treatment, including leadership of international clinical trials, drug development and establishing the role of liquid biopsy in clinical care. She and her team continue to work to improve outcomes for patients and access to state of the art care in Canada and worldwide. She serves on numerous international committees including the Board of Directors of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer. She chairs multiple guideline groups including the ASCO Thoracic Guidelines Advisory Group, the ESMO Early-Stage Lung Cancer Guideline, the International Society of Liquid Biopsy (ISLB) Education Committee and is ISLB Secretary-Elect. In 2019, she received the ASCO Excellence in Teaching Award. Many of her trainees have gone on to oncology leadership roles around the world.

Dr. David Parente, MD, FRCSC

Dr. David N. Parente joined the Division of Thoracic Surgery at St. Joseph’s Health Centre in 2021. He completed his Bachelor of Physical Education followed by his Medical Degree at the University of Toronto. He then completed his residency in General Surgery followed by Fellowship training in Thoracic Surgery at the University of Toronto, one of North America’s premier training sites. His surgical expertise is in current, minimally invasive approaches to Thoracic Surgery including minimally invasive esophagectomy and corrective surgery for pectus deformities.

Academically, his focus of research has been on quality improvement and patient safety projects that have direct, meaningful impacts to patients. He has presented his work on the international stage and has published in multiple peer-reviewed journals, including JAMA Surgery. Further, He has won multiple coveted awards for surgical teaching and patient care, including the Sopman Humanitarian Award and the Paddy Lewis Award at the University Heath Network for his efforts.

Andrew Pierre, MD MSc

Associate Professor, department of surgery
University of Toronto Division of Thoracic Surgery.

Dr. Andrew Pierre joined the Division of Thoracic Surgery at the Toronto General Hospital in 2002. In 1993 he graduated from the University of Toronto Medical Faculty and then trained in the Gallie Course completing this in 1999. During that time, he spent two years in the Thoracic Surgical Laboratories obtaining his Masters of Science under the supervision of Dr. Shaf Keshavjee.

After completing General Surgery, he spent two years in the Thoracic Surgical Training Program at the University of Toronto (1999-2001). Dr. Pierre spent the following year at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center training in advanced minimally invasive surgical procedures as they apply to the lung, esophagus, and mediastinum (2001-2002).

He has been on staff at the Toronto General Hospital since 2002, and is an associate professor of surgery at the University of Toronto. His current areas of expertise include lung transplantation, minimally invasive surgery, and tracheal reconstruction. From 2011 – 2022 he has been the program director for the thoracic surgery residency training at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Adrian Sacher, MD, MMSc, FRCPC

Cancer Clinical Research Unit (CCRU), Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Sacher is a Thoracic Oncologist & Affiliate Scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Medicine & Immunology at the University of Toronto. Dr. Sacher completed his medical degree at the University of Toronto and residency at the Toronto General Hospital and Princess Margaret Cancer Center. He has subsequently completed a research fellowship in thoracic oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and holds a Master’s degree in clinical trial design, genomics and drug development from Harvard Medical School. He has previously served as an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Attending Thoracic Oncologist at Columbia University & New York-Presbyterian Hospital. He has been awarded an American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Career Development Award (CDA) and Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) Project Grant for his work on tumor immunotherapy.

Dr. Thomas Waddell, M.D., F.R.C.S.C

Dr. Waddell completed his term as the Pearson-Ginsberg Chair, Division of Thoracic Surgery, University of Toronto and Head of the Division of Thoracic Surgery at University Health Network/Toronto General Hospital in 2021.

He received numerous honours for his research work including the Governor General’s Gold Medal and the Royal College Prize for Resident Research. He completed General Surgery training in 1997 and his Thoracic Surgery fellowship in 1998. Following completion of clinical training he undertook an additional year of laboratory research as a McLaughlin Fellow at Imperial College in London, England. He was appointed as Assistant Professor in 2000, promoted to Associate Professor in 2004, and was promoted to Full Professor in 2010. He has earned numerous distinctions, including the Blalock Scholarship from the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, a CIHR New investigator Award, a CFI New Opportunities Fund Award, the George Armstrong Peters Prize in the Department of Surgery, a Wightman-Berris Individual Teaching Award, and was recognized with the R. Fraser Elliott Chair in Transplantation Research in 2005and the Richard and Heather Thomson Chair in Translational Research in2010. In 2011, he received the highest research honour from the University of Toronto Department of Surgery, the Lister Prize.

He runs a large lab with funding from the Thoracic Surgery Foundation for Research and Education, CIHR, Heart and Stroke, the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, the Roche Organ Transplantation Research Foundation, the PSI Foundation and the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research. His laboratory focuses on alternative approaches to the chronic shortage of donor lungs, especially stem cell and regenerative medicine approaches to lung disease. He leads the lung group for the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine. His clinical interests include lung transplantation and lung volume reduction surgery, lung cancer and especially minimally invasive and robotic thoracic surgery.

Dr. Elliot Wakeam, MD MPH FACS

Assistant Professor, Thoracic Surgery, University of Toronto
Staff Thoracic Surgeon, Toronto General Hospital

Dr. Wakeam attended medical school at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia and completed his postgraduate training in General Surgery and Thoracic Surgery at the University of Toronto. While a general surgery resident, he pursued a master's degree in public health (MPH) from Harvard and a surgical outcomes research fellowship at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in the Center for Surgery and Public Health. During his general surgery residency, he was awarded the Resident Mentor Award. Following his general thoracic fellowship training, he undertook additional sub-specialty training in lung transplantation as a fellow in the Toronto Lung Transplant Program at Toronto General Hospital.

At UHN, he practices minimally invasive general thoracic surgery with a focus on esophageal, airway and complex general thoracic surgery. He is also a member in the Toronto lung transplant program. His research interests are in development of clinical trials in lung transplant and thoracic oncology, quality improvement.

Dr. Rebecca Wong, MBChB, FRCPC, MSc

Dr. Rebecca Wong is a radiation oncologist, Radiation Medicine Program, Princess Margaret Cancer Center; Professor, Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Toronto. She completed her MB ChB at Sheffield University (UK), residency at Queen’s University and MSc (Clinical Epidemiology) at McMaster University. Her clinical interests are in the areas of gastrointestinal malignancies, radiotherapy for patients with metastatic cancer and theranostics. She is the Canadian Lead for TOPGEAR clinical trial and Cochrane Review and Ontario guideline author on a number of GI cancer topics. She is the past chair for the Symptom Control Committee, and esophageal cancer working group (2009-2018), and currently serve on the Clinical Trials Committee, Canadian Cancer Trials Group. She was the co-chair for the Gastrointestinal guidelines group (2012-2018) and currently member of the report approval panel for the Program in Evidence Based Care for Ontario. She is the Co-Director of the Silber Family Theranostics Center at UHN. She was the past Vice Chair Education UTDRO (2014-2020) and current Director of Education, RMP.She is active in the design of innovative educational offerings for state of the art radiotherapy, and LMIC to support radiotherapy capacity building through collaborative partnerships, training and education.

Dr. Jonathan Yeung, MD, PhD

Dr. Jonathan Yeung is Associate Professor in the Division of Thoracic Surgery at the University of Toronto. He obtained his MD from the University of Toronto in 2005 and studied gene therapy and ex vivo lung perfusion as part of his PhD in the lab of Dr. Shaf Keshavjee. Following residency in General and Thoracic Surgery in Toronto, he pursued fellowship training in Lung Transplantation in Toronto and Surgical Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. His clinical practice covers general thoracic surgery and lung transplantation with an additional focus on foregut surgery. He is an Affiliate Scientist at the Toronto General Hospital Research Institute and his lab focuses on improving the personalized care of his patients using molecular approaches. Projects currently include the development of organoid technology to help predict responses to chemotherapy for patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma and the development of blood tests to anticipate transplanted organ dysfunction before clinically apparent injury.